Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Reactions to Abramovic/Kahlo/Xiuwen

I found that the work of Maria Abramovic, Frida Kahlo, and Cui Xiuwen each represented the female self in a different and interesting way. All these artists have represented themselves but they all are vastly different.

Maria Abramovic’s work all have a very self or introverted atmosphere to them. They don’t seem to represent hurt or suffering but simply exist to investigate herself on a more deeper level. The way that she incorporates herself in her images is quite interesting. In “The Family I,” she seems to be a leader of some underground militia force. However, all the members are young girls. This seems to me to be more of a political statement with Abramovic at the front. Other works such as “Cleaning the House,” have more emotion in them. I found that this piece represented more of a struggle accepting herself as a female in society. That fact that she is wearing a dress and is in the act of cleaning clearly shows that she is doing some commonly stereotyped actions that women do. The facial expression on Maria is one that shows a bit of longing and almost makes me think that she does not want to be doing what she’s doing at all. Some of my interpretations of her work is that she plays on many female stereotypes and common misconceptions about women.

Frida Kahlo’s work also seemed to explore her inner self. I almost feel as if she always painted herself in a very unattractive way on purpose. Almost like she does not even care that she looks very strange. Her portrayal of her unibrow is a great example of this. Her work also shows a lot of pain and suffering. “The Broken Column” really does not only show that physical pain in her life but also the emotional toll that it took on her life. Frida is often in tears in many of her paintings. Her portrayal of women and more specifically herself, is one that is very sad and broken.

Cui Xiuwen’s work in very different the previous artists. Her work seems to represent the vulnerability that is present within women. While Abramovic is representing identity for women, Kahlo represents a weathered pain, Xiuwen’s work represents a sense of confusion and not knowing what to do. “Angel No. 1” really shows this ‘confusion’ as the girl in the photo really looks like she does not know what to do. She is pregnant but still retains a sense of innocence and youth. I feel as if Xiuwen is trying to portray a girl who grew up too fast. One who was physically ready but mentally was not. The differences in culture are also a lot more prevelant in Xiuwen’s works as opposed to Kahlo and Abramovic. The eastern way of life is starkly contrasting with the more familiar western culture. Life as depicted in Xiuwen’s work looks so foreign to me simply due to the Chinese influence that is prevalent in the piece. Everything looks so orderly yet out of place in Xiuwen’s work. All the girls have the same outfit on, yet all of them show a sense of desperation and confusion.